Sedgwick County Zoo sets up donation fund in tribute to internet-famous chimp Kucheza
It wasn’t along after Sedgwick County Zoo shared somber news of his death that tributes began to pour in for five-week-old chimpanzee Kucheza.
After a video of his mother, Mahale, being reunited with him after an emergency c-section went viral in November, the chimp rose to internet fame. Thursday, the zoo reported they had found the young primate dead and cradled in his mother’s arms.
His cause of death has not yet been released, but the zoo has seen an outpouring of support on social media.
“Broken hearted for all of you who cared for this little guy, but so much more so for Mahale. A mother’s loss is a mother’s loss. Period. Chimps are so clearly our kin, and it is good to see people here appreciate and understand her pain,” Facebook user Ann Kumpe Suzidelis commented.
It is one of nearly 6,000 condolences left on the zoo’s post by Friday afternoon.
“Thank you for the 5 weeks of joy, Kucheza. You truly made the world a happier place, and you united humans around the world with love, joy, and hope during a difficult time for humanity,” user Marcela Gimenez-Clough wrote, in part.
Condolences also flooded in on Twitter and Instagram, where several other U.S. zoos shared their grief over Kucheza’s death.
In its announcement, the zoo said Kucheza’s life was an opportunity to educate the public on the conservation of chimpanzees.
“The entire Sedgwick County Zoo family is still in shock from the sudden death of Kucheza. The outpouring of support and condolences from all over the world have been invaluable in the healing process for us all,” a zoo spokesperson said in a Friday email. “We know that as short as Kucheza’s life was, he touched so many and inspired so much love.”
Shared via pinned comment, Sedgwick County Zoo officials said the community could donate online to chimpanzee conservation in Kucheza’s honor.
Donations start at $5 and increase in increments of $5.
The World Wildlife Foundation lists the chimp as an endangered species, with a population between 172,700 and 299,700.
This story may be updated.
This story was originally published December 23, 2022 at 1:28 PM.